launcher

There are plenty of available options for Android launcher apps. In fact, it seems we are having a run on launchers that are arriving in beta form. Just recently we took at look at Themer and while we haven't gotten hands-on with this other just yet, we are looking forward to taking it for a test drive. The other launcher is called Aviate and it has just recently arrived in the Google Play Store.

Themer, the popular new app/launcher, has a waitlist approaching several hundred thousand people. The promise is simple: theme your device easily, making it appear fresh on a whim. Accomplished via a link to their MyColorScreen site, which houses various themes for you to use (as well as a tool to build your own!), Themer wants to make the fussy task of theming a device as simple as looking through a picture gallery. No wonder the wait list is so long.

When iOS 7 arrived, some loved its melodic use of soft colors. Others derided it for being too, well, colorful. The flat icons, the chromatic color scheme, the blinding blue-ish background -- it was too much for some. Android fans were no different: they either loved it, or loved to hate it.

There isn't any shortage of options when it comes to launchers. A quick search of the Play Store will turn up numerous results and each seems to have their own group of diehard users. As for us, since taking a deep dive into launchers over the summer, we have been stuck on Action Launcher. The app is currently sitting at v1.9.1 and while things are stable and comfortable, we are anxiously waiting the big 2.0 release.

This morning we're getting multiple reports that Google has changed up their usual black navigation bar on their homepage, and replaced it with a brand new Android-style app launcher. The horizontal black bar for navigation to Search, Images, Maps, Gmail, Play, YouTube and more have all been moved to an app launcher menu. Blending the lines between Android and desktop even more.

Samsung and Qualcomm each unveiled a smartwatch last week. Samsung had the Galaxy Gear and Qualcomm had the Toq and while each had some good points and bad points, we cannot help but keep looking back towards a recently launched Kickstarter. Or maybe more accurately, the folks at Omate won't let us forget due to the rapid series of updates they have been providing. And with that, the latest Omate Kickstarter update is offering a look at the launcher.

Action Launcher has recently been updated and while this one may not be considered a huge update by everyone, it did provide some worthwhile new features, changes and improvements. To begin with, those using Action Launcher will now be able to hide the notification bar. This option is hidden away in the Labs section, which does mean it is still considered experimental.

We're no strangers to home replacement launchers here, especially one as excellent as Nova. For all you Nova launcher and Prime users out there, today the developers at Teslacoil have just issued a nice little update that will bring tons of additional options and effects to your smartphone and tablet.

Facebook has begun pushing out another update to their Facebook Home replacement launcher today, but so far we have no clue as to what actually changed. This isn't the first update, but most new features have arrived through the official Facebook app, not the Home app itself. It still says version 1.0 in the Play Store, and there is no changelog. So your guess is as good as ours.

BlackBerry announced the Secure Work Space app for Android earlier in the year and as of today that app has arrived in the Google Play Store. The app is called 'Secure Work Space for BES10' and while we suspect some may be happy to learn that it is available -- there is a catch. Basically, while the app is available you still need to have the support of your company before getting any use out of it.